Making strategy steerable
How a public export finance institution turned its owner’s expectations into a strategy its Board can steer – in calm markets and in crises.
The challenge
Like many public export finance institutions, our client works within objectives set by its government as owner: support exporters and SMEs, work with the financial market, remain financially self-sustaining, manage risks prudently and cooperate with other public instruments. These expectations are broad and do not by themselves tell management where to focus or the Board how to judge progress. The institution wanted a strategy that turns them into clear priorities and prepares it for a more volatile environment.
Our work
Our experts worked closely with the Board and executive management. Starting from the owner’s expectations, we structured the strategy along three levels – direction, execution and results – and defined a small set of success factors for each, every one linked back to the owner’s objectives. Capital and exposure, risk appetite, crisis preparedness, product flexibility, whole-of-government coordination and people became part of the core strategy rather than an annex. Targets combine client feedback, financial and risk metrics, self-assessment and international peer comparison. The draft was finalised in a Board retreat and translated into a multi-year roadmap and an annual Board cockpit with traffic-light status.
The impact
The Board adopted the strategy as its own. Owner expectations, priorities, targets and Board reporting now form one consistent system, and the annual cockpit shows at a glance where the agency is on track and where it needs to act. Resilience has become a managed, visible part of how the agency is run.
